The Spirituality of the Cross is an excellent book by Gene Edward Veith. Perhaps my favorite of his (though lesser known gems include The Gift of Art: The Place of the Arts in Scripture and Loving God with All Your Mind: Thinking as a Christian in the Postmodern World) . Spirituality of the Cross conveys both content and vernacular language with which to communicate theological substance, but, better yet, it is so well-written! I reread it yesterday, and I still marvel. It is inspirational to me, as a Lutheran and as a Lutheran writer.